''Threshold'' is a space-themed

fixed shooter Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs ) are a sub-genre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of charact ...

written by Warren Schwader and Ken Williams for the

Apple II The Apple II (stylized as ) is an 8-bit home computer and one of the world's first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products. It was designed primarily by Steve Wozniak; Jerry Manock developed the design of Apple II's foam-mold ...

and published by

On-Line Systems In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" or ...

in 1981. Inspired by Sega's ''

Astro Blaster ''Astro Blaster'' is a space-themed fixed shooter released in arcades by Sega in 1981. It was designed and programmed by Gary Shannon and Barbara Michalec. The game uses speech synthesis and during attract mode a voice says "Fighter pilots ne ...

'' arcade video game, ''Threshold'' introduces many enemy ship types and wave formations as the game progresses. Reviewers found the variety distinguished the game from the many similar shoot 'em ups. Ports to other systems were released on ROM cartridge:

Atari 8-bit family The Atari 8-bit family is a series of 8-bit home computers introduced by Atari, Inc. in 1979 as the Atari 400 and Atari 800. The series was successively upgraded to Atari 1200XL , Atari 600XL, Atari 800XL, Atari 65XE, Atari 130XE, Atari 800XE ...

and

VIC-20 The VIC-20 (known as the VC-20 in Germany and the VIC-1001 in Japan) is an 8-bit home computer that was sold by Commodore Business Machines. The VIC-20 was announced in 1980, roughly three years after Commodore's first personal computer, the ...

in 1981, Commodore 64 in 1983, and

ColecoVision ColecoVision is a second-generation home video-game console developed by Coleco and launched in North America in August 1982. It was released a year later in Europe by CBS Electronics as the CBS ColecoVision. The console offered a closer exp ...

and

Thomson computers In the 1980s the French Thomson company produced a range of 8-bit computers based on the 6809E CPU. They were released in several variations (mostly concerning the keyboard or color of the casing) covering the MO and TO series from late 1982 to 1 ...

in 1984. An

Atari 2600 The Atari 2600, initially branded as the Atari Video Computer System (Atari VCS) from its release until November 1982, is a home video game console developed and produced by Atari, Inc. Released in September 1977, it popularized microprocess ...

adaptation was published by

Tigervision Tigervision was a subsidiary of Tiger Toys which produced video games for the Atari 2600, Atari 8-bit family, TI-99/4A, VIC-20 and Commodore 64. Most of their games were ports. ''Polaris'' and '' River Patrol'' were originally arcade games from ...

in 1982. Schwader also wrote the 1983 Apple II platform game ''

Sammy Lightfoot ''Sammy Lightfoot'' is a video game written by Warren Schwader for the Apple II and published by Sierra On-Line in 1983. It is a multi-screen platform game (or "climbing game", as the genre was called in the US in 1983), in the vein of '' Donke ...

''.

Gameplay

The player controls the spaceship ''Threshold'', using its laser weapon to destroy waves of alien attackers. When a wave is eliminated, another appears. As in ''Astro Blaster'', firing the laser increases its temperature, and it cools when not in use. If the temperature bar fills completely, then the weapon cannot be used until it fully cools. Once per ship, pulling back on the joystick activates a "warp drive" that slows the action down.

Development

The game was inspired by Ken Williams playing an ''

'' arcade machine in a store and calling Warren Schwader. In an interview in '' Halcyon Days'', Schwader said: It took two months to implement. Williams only worked on the project for two weeks of that time, writing the Apple II animation routines.

Reception

''Threshold'' sold approximately 25,000 copies. Tigervision's Atari 2600 port received a "Certificate of Merit" in the "Best Science Fiction/Fantasy Videogame" category of the 1983 Arcade Awards. Reviewing the Apple II original for ''

Creative Computing ''Creative Computing'' was one of the earliest magazines covering the microcomputer revolution. Published from October 1974 until December 1985, the magazine covered the spectrum of hobbyist/home/personal computing in a more accessible format th ...

'',

David Lubar David Lubar (born March 16, 1954) is an author of numerous books for teens. He is also a video game programmer, who programmed ''Super Breakout'' for the Game Boy and ''Frogger'' for both the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy. He ...

wrote, "The animation in ''Threshold'' is superb", and he found the number of enemy types and waves to be a strong point. ''The Book of Atari Software 1983'' gave the Atari 8-bit port a B rating: "It's the usual scenario, with this exception: the game offers unusual depth and variety." They found they sometimes mistook the stars in the animated background as enemy bullets. In ''

Ahoy! ''Ahoy!'' was a computer magazine published between January 1984 and January 1989 in the US, focusing on all Commodore color computers, but especially the Commodore 64 and Amiga. History The first issue of ''Ahoy!'' was published in January 1 ...

'' magazine, R.J. Michaels led off his review with, "Only humor saves this game from being a run of the mill slide-and-shoot burn-the-alien-invaders game." Appraising the Atari 8-bit computer version, ''

Electronic Games An electronic game is a game that uses electronics to create an interactive system with which a player can play. Video games are the most common form today, and for this reason the two terms are often used interchangeably. There are other common ...

'' noticed the ''Astro Blaster'' connection and wrote "The graphics in ''Threshold'' are tremendous." The reviewer disliked the loading that occurs every so often between levels and found the game overall too difficult.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , title=The Giant List of Classic Game Programmers, url=https://dadgum.com/giantlist/ , last1=Hague , first=James {{cite journal , last1=Lubar , first1=David , title=Let the Games Begin , journal=Creative Computing , date=April 1982 , volume=8 , issue=4 , page=56 , url=https://archive.org/details/creativecomputing-1982-04-a/page/n57/mode/2up {{cite book , title=Halcyon Days: Interviews with Classic Computer and Video Game Programmers , date=1997 , url=https://dadgum.com/halcyon/BOOK/SCHWADER.HTM

External links

''Threshold''
for the Atari 8-bit family at Atari Mania
''Threshold''
at Gamebase 64
Review
in ''

Antic Alphanumeric Television Interface Controller (ANTIC) is an LSI ASIC dedicated to generating 2D computer graphics to be shown on a television screen or computer display. Under the direction of Jay Miner, the chip was designed in 1977-1978 by ...

''
Review
in ''

Softalk ''Softalk'' () was an American magazine of the early 1980s that focused on the Apple II computer. Published from September 1980 through August 1984, it featured articles about hardware and software associated with the Apple II platform and the pe ...

''
Review
in ''

'' 1981 video games Alien invasions in video games Apple II games Atari 8-bit family games Atari 2600 games VIC-20 games Commodore 64 games ColecoVision games Fixed shooters Video game clones Video games developed in the United States Tigervision games